“Just tell me the truth, the real truth, I deserve that. Your daughter deserves that.”“She does and the truth is I know she is mine, I knew the day I walked away, I wanted to be with you, but I couldn’t, the truth would come out, and you would hate me. My parents would not allow it.”“I don’t understand.”“Of course you don’t.”“Vinnie is in love with your sister.”He was not making any sense. I narrowed my eyes and stared at him.“Maybe I should start from the beginning,” he said, sitting beside me and taking my hand. I attempted to pull away, but he held on tight as he told his story.“We met at the bowling alley, that much is true. Vinnie was the guy you met, that much is true, but he was a player back in the day. He liked you, he did, but he also liked another girl and since you and the other girl had no idea about who we were, we did what he always wanted, swapped places.It was not the first time we had done this, he was not sure which of the two of you he liked and rather than lose one of you he got me to be the other him. I never liked doing it. I was born three minutes after Vinnie. He always liked to rub that in. No one ratted us out, they did not care, they found it funny. We always did it at school, we got out of so many detentions that way.Anyway, he chose the other girl, but me, I liked you and for once he allowed me to see you as him, how could I tell you I was me. I could not do it. It was all based on a lie. The kiss you shared was not with Vinnie, but me, those few minutes he disappeared was switching places with me, and jumpers. I had been on his date until the swap, but I was glad he did it.I was meant to end things with you as per the plan, it was always the plan with Vinnie, but when he found out I never ended it, he wanted in. I am not proud of it, but for a few weeks, we took it in turns to date you. Six weeks later, he wanted it to be over. That I really had to end it, but I couldn’t, wouldn’t. I had no choice but continue being him. He wanted to date other girls. He was too young he said to be tied down to one blonde girl.Truth is Vinnie wanted me to tell you everything, but I just knew if we told you I would lose you.”I continued to stare at him, what the hell did he just say, who the hell is he? I still had no idea, but twins, I understood that much, he was Vinnie’s identical twin. It made sense, it did. Had I ever loved Vinnie or had it always been him, was my sister in love with the real Vinnie? I was glad I was sitting, my head was spinning.​

“I had no idea you felt that way.”“Now you do. We were together for two years, Vinnie, before you walked out on me, us.”He shook his head and turned his back on me.He still looked good, but he had not changed.Seventeen years old, never had a real boyfriend, I had kissed two, but that was it. I never wanted to be more than friends. One of those kisses was a dare. The other at prom, and during a slow dance, I never saw him again after that.The night I met Vinnie I was out with friends at the bowling alley, not my idea I might add. I arrived and changed into the clown shoes, sat and tied the laces. We began our game, once our names were up on the board, in bright white lights.I was never any good, only came because my best friend insisted I did. I selected a ball, and stood at the end of the lane. Took aim, ready to throw it down the lane, but as I did, one of my friends called my name, causing me to miss mine completely. It flew towards the lane beside me, as a guy was about to take aim. My eyes wide, my mouth open, as it hit the pins and knocked every single one of them down.“Thanks,” he said, staring at me. His eyes sparkling as he spoke.“I am sorry.”“No, I mean you improved my score, I am totally losing here.”“Me too, I’ve never been able to get a strike, until now.”The game was forgotten as we sat talking for the rest of the night, I was not bothered about playing anyway. I changed shoes and told them I was leaving early, Vinnie walked me home. He did disappear for about five minutes telling me he would be right back.He was, and then he walked me home, kissing me before promising we would see each other again.We saw each other every day, meeting in secret.The park, we met many times there, but over time, we met elsewhere, at the bandstand, on the bench facing the lake.We spent hours making out on that bench, carved our names in the seat. I lied about where I was going, meeting friends I said. My mother was not keen on the idea of me having a boyfriend. Six weeks later, I knew I was in love, six weeks later.They knew I had no idea how, they believed it would fizzle out like my older sisters had. They let it run the course, but two years later, we were still a couple, and in love. So I thought.My parents wanted to meet him, but that day was the day I discovered I was pregnant. I told him and he fled. It was all over.

“Jessica.”“What.”He turned to face me.“I need to tell you something, the truth.”“The truth, come it’s about damn time.”“I’m not Vinnie.”“You’re not funny,” I snapped, damn him and his lies. “You think that shit is going to work, pretend you’re not Vinnie, well you look and smell just like him.”“Yeah, well it is true, I am not him. Vinnie is real!”I stared at him, he had to be joking. He was Vinnie. My Vinnie.

I walked to the car, maybe coming was a mistake, but it had to be done. I had to talk to him, even if when I saw him stood there, my heart skipped a beat. I would not come between my sister and Vinnie. If she decided to marry him, I could not do that to her. Even as I thought the words, did I feel the spark the tiny electricity of how he made me feel when he touched me. I heard the door slam shut. I turned to find Vinnie storming towards me, even with the angry look on his face, he made me knees weak. I had to stop myself, recall the reason I hated him and why I was here.“You need to leave, now,” he said, as he slips a piece of paper in my hand, he shakes his head and tells me to go.I want to read the scrap of paper, and do so once I am safely inside my car. Those words made my heart race. He wanted to meet in an hour, in our spot, the place that we always met at, when we were in love.I drove to the nearest car park, locked the car and crossed the street to the café. Ordered a medium latte, added a sugar, stirred it and took a sip. The café was full and I had no choice but to take the coffee to go.Outside I walked to the edge of the road, located a vacant seat on a bench and drank the coffee while I waited to meet Vinnie. I had half an hour to wait. It only takes five minutes to reach the meeting spot, and I planned to be on time, if not early.Arriving, I sat where we always used to sit. The moment I was there, memories came flooding back. First memories of his lips on mine, his hands exploring my body, at least in the early days, we were young, he was my first everything. We had taken it slowly. I wanted him to love me for ever. At least that it is what I thought would happen. He showed me the kind of love that a young girl only dreamed off.We spent many hours here in the beginning of our relationship, kissing and falling in love.I titled my head, and just as I recalled the touch of his lips one last time did he appear. I had to push those feelings aside, remembering the feelings of him leaving me, and then him stood with his arms around my sister.He starts by saying he loves my Amy.“I don’t want to talk about you and Amy, what I want to talk about has nothing to do with her.”“But it does, what you are saying effects all of us. I never meant to hurt you, and if I had known she was your sister…”“You would not have dated her?”“No, I wouldn’t have. How was I supposed to know and…”“None of that matters. What we need to talk about is our daughter.”“Are you sure she is mine?”“Vinnie.”“I had to ask. You have to understand that. You need to know I am not the same guy you remember, the one that walked away.”“Vinnie, you may not be the same guy, or like it, but she is your daughter. Nothing can change that.”He sits beside me, and turns to face me, those dimples, that smile, those lips. I had to stop looking at him like I did all those years ago, but having him sat beside me, so close I could feel the warmth of his skin. I could smell the scent of his aftershave. I could tell he looked after himself. The closer he got, the hotter under the collar I got, and when he leaned in to kiss me, I almost allowed him to.“No, you do not get to do that, you just said, and no. I will not do that to my sister. Changed, yeah right.”“You still love me, don’t you?”My heart yearned for him, but my head screamed no. I could not say it.“I know you do.”“That’s not fair Vinnie.” I said, standing, how dare he try and kiss me, what was he trying to do? I shook my head. “We are not here to talk about us, what was or could have been.”“You’re right, I’m sorry, being here, seeing you again. I should have not suggested here, but…”“Forget about it, what we need to do next Vinnie, because even though I know you are, your parents, my own sister, maybe even you don’t believe she is yours, so what you need to do is a DNA test. Prove to them what I already know.”“I agree, we should, and I am sorry about them, my mother is upset, she thought I was finally settling down, and found a decent young pretty bride…and then this…”“I messed that all up, well that is tough, I…”“I know, my father wanted me to give you money to say it was not mine, even if it turned out it was.”My mouth fell open. He wanted to buy me off. Silence me, because if it got out he walked out on us, it would not look good, no I could imagine the story they would tell, I knew would be I was a tramp who seduced him and got pregnant. Not telling him until now to get the money he now had. Because I could predict the future and knew his family were weatly, he had kept that from me all those years ago, I did not blame him, but now I wished he had taken on some of the repsonsiblity. Being young, single nad broke, was hard, but I did it. Having a little money from him, would have helped me out more. Even now it could, but I was not after his money, I wanted my daughter to have a father, she had a right to know him, even if that thought scared the hell out of me, what if….i could not even think it.“How could he suggest that?”“I know.” He pauses. “Do you remember how we used to come here all the time, in this exact spot? Make out for hours?”“Of course I do, but…”“That day you told me you were pregnant.”Like I could forget, it was why I hated him, even if my heart and body was reacting to every word he said.“I was a stupid scared kid, I did not want a child, hell I was a child myself, but telling you to get rid of her was wrong. I regret that, I do, and walking away from you, was immature of me, I…”“You regret it?”“Yes, but I can’t change that, when I told my parents because I needed to talk to someone, and I had hurt the person I loved. I knew I could not come back to you, you told me you hated me, and never ever come near you again.”“I did say that, but I never meant it. I loved you.”“I believed you, even if all I wanted to do was run back into your arms and tell you I loved you, and that we could work it out.”“Why didn’t you?”“My parents told me you had cheated on me and that child was most likely not mine anyway, I believed them. I could not take you back, you broke my heart.”They told him I cheated, how dare they? I was angry, shaking from head to toe. I was fuming.“A few weeks later, my parents sent me away for a few months, when I got back, and they told me that if I went back to you, they would cut me off.”“Money, you stayed away because of money?”“Yes, I know it sounds bad.”“Sounds.”“It was bad, okay, but how was I meant to take care of you, a baby I was not even sure was mine. I could barely take care of myself. What kind of father would have I been, not being able to support the child. Where would I have gotten any money to support us?”“A job. Anyway, you know being a father is more than just what money you have in the bank.”“I know that, now of course, back then I didn’t.”“Do you believe me now, that she is yours, will it really take a DNA test, I will do one, but I know you are her father.”“She does look like me a little doesn’t she?”“Yes, she does. I know your family will not believe it until its in black and white. So will you do one?”“Yes.”“Good. Now that is settled.”“It is. What now?”“I don’t know, I am still processing all this.” I paused. “I hated you for so long, but now, seeing you, here, how can you make me feel this way. I can’t attend the wedding I can’t do it. I can’t see you doing all the things you should be doing with me. Marrying my sister, you should have been marrying me. I thought before I fell pregnant that you were going to ask me.”“You did?”“Yes, I did,” I said, tears streaming down my face.